A slight awkwardness appeared on Gao Chengxuan's face, while in the distance, Zhou Yeran's eyes seemed ready to spew flames. He gave a few instructions to the disciples by his side, and then his expression returned to normal.
Gao Chengxuan returned to his previous position and addressed Zhou Yeran, "Lately, there's been a lot going on in the palace. I'm not sure if I can take some time off here to cultivate under Sect Master Zhou."
Zhou Yeran smiled, "Your stay here is an honor for our entire Cold Mountain Sword Sect. I'll instruct someone to arrange it for you immediately."
Gao Chengxuan nodded, gesturing for Zhou Yeran to lead the way. He rode in a carriage, with hundreds of soldiers following him for protection.
Gao Chengxuan set up a barrier, whispered a few words to someone named Zuo Xuan, and then sat on the carriage frame, closing his eyes to rest.
On the other side, Song Weizhi found a random secluded place nearby. She set up a barrier around the two and opened a small wooden box in her hand. The yellow gas inside flowed into Song Weizhi's hand. She pushed some spiritual qi into it, directing it into Song Zhixia's body.
The young girl was familiar with this process, but refining the soul fragment still required some time. So, she began to meditate on the spot. Song Weizhi, on the other hand, cautiously observed the surroundings. Holding this soul fragment made her a target for everyone, so she had to be careful.
Indeed, not even half an hour had passed, and someone came knocking. The leader was none other than Qi Yingzhe, who had just finished the Martial Arts Tournament. Behind him were dozens of disciples.
Song Weizhi calmly walked out of the barrier. "Senior Brother Qi, is there something you need?"
Qi Yingzhe glanced at Song Weizhi, then looked at Song Zhixia behind her. "Junior Sister Song, why don't you come back with me? Sect Master wants to see you."
"And what if we refuse?" Song Weizhi said, raising the Li Shuo Sword in front of her.
"Then I'll have to take action. Sorry, Junior Sister Song, for any offense," Qi Yingzhe said, drawing his sword.
Song Weizhi stood in front alone, protecting Song Zhixia, who was still absorbing the soul fragment. At this moment, she just wanted to buy more time for the little girl. Song Weizhi infused spiritual qi into the Li Shuo Sword, making a horizontal slash. Qi Yingzhe's disciples were pushed back several meters, some even vomiting blood.
At this moment, Qi Yingzhe's reinforcements arrived, the Elders of the Cold Mountain Sword Sect. Song Weizhi immediately felt that things were taking a turn for the worse. There were three Elders in total, all in the Harmony Realm, much higher in cultivation than Song Weizhi.
"Junior Sister Song, we are all allies. You should come back with us to see the Sect Master. Otherwise, you should be aware of the strength of these three elders," Qi Yingzhe said from the side.
Song Weizhi glanced at Song Zhixia behind her and directly raised her sword, charging at the three Elders. She couldn't engage in direct confrontation, so she could only dodge left and right, trying to buy more time for Song Zhixia. However, the difference in strength was too great, and Song Weizhi was quickly running out of spiritual qi. She endured several blows, blood continuously oozing from her mouth, and could only stand in front of the barrier.
The Head Elder delivered another palm strike directly towards Song Weizhi. With her spiritual qi nearly depleted, Song Weizhi had no time to react and was heavily slammed to the ground. When she tried to get up, she found herself in excruciating pain and unable to move.
Fortunately, at this moment, Song Zhixia had completed the refinement of the soul fragment. She ran to Song Weizhi, shielding her. However, being only in the Golden Core realm, Song Zhixia was ignored by the Elders.
"Senior Sister, how are you? Why are you bleeding so much?" Song Zhixia supported Song Weizhi, tears falling drop by drop.
"I'm fine, Xia Xia. This time, we are truly in a perilous situation. But remember, don't agree to anything they say. Remember my words," Song Weizhi gritted her teeth, as if uttering these words had exhausted all her strength.
"Okay, I'll listen to you, Senior Sister. Everything will be fine. We will be fine, Senior Sister," Song Zhixia embraced Song Weizhi, tears streaming down.
"Enough already. If you had come with us earlier, we wouldn't have gone through all this trouble," the Head Elder grumbled discontentedly. Immediately, a strand of rope appeared in his hand, emitting white light. He waved his hand, and the next moment, the white light tightly entwined around Song Weizhi and Song Zhixia.
Song Zhixia anxiously said, "If you want to tie someone up, tie me. Don't touch my Senior Sister. She's already seriously injured and can't run away. Why do this?"
"Heh, little girl, whatever you want to say, just say it to the Sect Master later. We won't take such risks. You've just seen how arrogant your Senior Sister was, and she even injured quite a few disciples. Alright, take them away," the Head Elder said impatiently.
Several disciples formed a sword formation, trapping the two within it, and flew towards the main hall of the Cold Mountain Sword Sect. Song Weizhi's heart sank with them. In the end, it was her insufficient strength, coupled with poor planning. She wasn't worried about herself, as she was someone who had already died once. However, she didn't want the young girl to suffer the hardships of the original story. Thinking about the faces of those people in the main hall later, Song Weizhi's stomach churned with sourness.
Song Zhixia bit her lower lip tightly, forcefully leaving a row of bloodstains above it. She hated herself for not having the ability to save Song Weizhi. Every time, it was Song Weizhi protecting her.
On the other side, Wei Zhao, upon learning that Zhou Yeran had sent someone to find Song Weizhi, began to sense that something was amiss.
"Wei Zhao, where are you going?" Zhou Qingxue was already upset because Wei Zhao conceded, and now, seeing that Wei Zhao was leaving without saying a word, she became anxious.
"Why is your father looking for my Mistress?" Wei Zhao turned around to look at Zhou Qingxue, her eyes full of scrutiny.
Zhou Qingxue was immediately angered by her tone. Since childhood, her father had always doted on her. Her father looking for Song Weizhi must be for a reason. Could it be that they harmed Song Weizhi? Who did Wei Zhao think her father was?
"What else could it be? My father is the Sect Master. Could he harm her? If you don't believe it, you can go and see for yourself. My father should be at the main hall now."
Before Zhou Qingxue could finish her words, Wei Zhao had already flown away on her sword. Left behind, Zhou Qingxue shouted, "Are you really going? Wait for me."
When the two were about to reach the main hall, they saw several Elders holding something in their hands. Wei Zhao hurriedly descended on her sword, only to see the barely alive Song Weizhi and Song Zhixia tied up with ropes.
Wei Zhao felt like her head was about to explode. She immediately blocked the path of those people, attempting to snatch the ropes binding Song Weizhi and Song Zhixia from them.
"What are you doing? Have you gone mad? Release my Mistress immediately!" Wei Zhao said, and her whip had already swung towards the Head Elder. Unfortunately, before the whip could touch the Head Elder's robe, Wei Zhao was slapped away by a palm, only stopping after colliding with a pillar in the main hall and spitting out a mouthful of blood.
Zhou Qingxue was even more dumbfounded. She quickly ran in and tried to help up the fallen Wei Zhao, but Wei Zhao pushed her away.
"Heh, Miss of the Cold Mountain Sword Sect, I don't need your fake sympathy," Wei Zhao said as she climbed up from the ground, turning to look at Zhou Yeran sitting in the middle of the main hall. "What exactly do you want to do to my Mistress? You hypocrite."
Zhou Yeran was already dissatisfied when he saw Wei Zhao pushing down his daughter. Now, she directly insulted him.
Zhou Yeran's hand grabbed the air, and Wei Zhao was lifted into the air. "If not for the sake of my daughter, you would have been ashes by now. Get lost." With that, he threw Wei Zhao away. Zhou Yeran, in the Mahayana realm, didn't seem to exert much effort, but in reality, Wei Zhao was thrown against a pillar in the main hall, and this time, she couldn't get up again.
Zhou Qingxue was stunned. From childhood to adulthood, her father had always cherished her. She had never seen this side of her father. "Father, why did you use such force?"
Zhou Yeran frowned, glancing at Zhou Qingxue, "In the past, I spoiled you too much. Now that you've grown up, you must remember not to be lenient with enemies."
"But what did they do? Why treat them like this?" Zhou Qingxue questioned loudly.
"What did they do? Ask Song Weizhi. As long as you hand over the soul fragment of the Vermilion Bird, I promise to release you and Song Zhixia. I'll even give you other treasures as compensation. What do you think?" Zhou Yeran looked coldly at Song Weizhi.
"Want the fragment? Heh, I've already thrown it away. Don't even think about it," Song Weizhi retorted, but in his anger, Zhou Yeran removed the chains and struck Song Weizhi with a heavy blow. This blow directly distorted Song Weizhi's face, even her eyes were covered by the blood flowing from her face.
"Are you okay, Senior Sister? If you have any issues, come at me. Don't touch Senior Sister," Song Zhixia's voice was already hoarse from shouting.
Watching all this, Zhou Qingxue's tears fell down her cheeks. She couldn't believe this was her father, who had always been loving to her. "Father, I beg you not to do this, spare them. The rewards of the Martial Arts Tournament belong to whoever wins it. You taught me to be a gentleman since childhood, but now, how are you any different from a bandit?" Her voice was murmuring, hoping that what she saw was not true.
Zhou Yeran had no mercy. He snorted at Zhou Qingxue, "It's because I spoiled you. Some things require humility, but some things must be in one's own hands. To obtain these things, you can't avoid getting some blood on your hands. You and your brother were both misled by your mother. How can you inherit the Cold Mountain Sword Sect in the future?"
Zhou Qingxue, unable to believe it, shook her head and retreated to Wei Zhao's side. Wei Zhao's eyelids were heavy, and she had already fainted.
During Zhou Yeran's conversation with Zhou Qingxue, Song Weizhi, ignoring the blood on her face, used her last strength to say to Song Zhixia, "Xia Xia, don't agree to anything. Even if you agree, none of us will survive."
Tied up with ropes, Song Zhixia could only nod in place. She had cried herself out of strength, but no one cared.